Fabric-guiding device.



J. THORNBER. FABRIC cumme DEVICE.

APPLICATION F'ILED Aue.9. 19m. 1,282,985., Patented Oct. 29,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

.I. THORNBER.

FABRIC GUIDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION .FILED AUG.9.'I9|6.

2 SHEETSSHEEI 2.

Patented Oct. 29, 1918.

PATENT FIQ.

JOHN THORNBER, OF BRADFORD, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO BRADFORD DYERS ASSOCIATION LIMITED, 0F BRADFORD, ENGLAND.

FABRIC-GUIDING DEVICE.

Application filed August 9.

-nism whereby the guiding or feeding of fabrics to stentering or like machines may be carried out in such a manner as to eep same straight and even as is well known, and the object of my present invention is the production of these devices or mechanism ofsuch a character as to enable themto act efliciently with little inconvenience to the user, while their cost of production as compared with devices as heretofore employed, is comparatively little.

My said invention consists in the employment of a disk at one or both edge or edges of the fabric, each of such disks being freely mounted on an axis that occupies a position approximately at right angles to the plane in which thefabric travels while it is so placed that the fabric Which it has to guide will travel over half or nearly half of the flat surface of said disk thus causing same to rotate and to effect a lateral pull upon the fabric. 1

Preferably I employ in conjunction with said disks, runners or bowls which rest thereon and which by lever devices are controlled in their actions according to the position of the fabric being gu ded. t

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 11918. 1916. Serial No. 113,939.

work of the machine for supporting the cross bars shown by Figs. 1 and 2.

l Fig. f is a plan of the parts illustrated by Fig. 5 is a plan drawn to a reduced scale showing my apparatus mounted in position as upon the two sides of a machine so that the fabric being fed thereto will have both of its edges guided by same.

B indicates the brackets extending from the movable parts of the machine to support my; improved devices as hereinafter explained, and C indicates the brackets secured to the fixed framework of the same machine.

In carrying my invention into effect I make use of a pair of disks 2, 2*, one disk being mounted on one side of the machine while the other disk is mounted on the opposite side of the machine. These disks 2, 2 are arranged to revolve freely in bearings 3 with their upper surfaces somewhat in the horizontal plane or in that plane in which the fabric 1) they have to guide, travels. The bearings 3, upon which the disks 2, 2 are mounted, are made so that they may be regulated to adjust said disk at any desired angle to the horizontal plane, as the extent to which it may be necessary for them to pull upon the fabric they are to guide may determine. The axial shafts 2 of the disks 2, 2 are arranged to revolve as stated in the bearings 3 while they extend above the upper surfaces of said disks 2 in order to have mounted upon them bearings 4, 4 which by the axial pins 4* mounted upon said bearings 4:, 4 support a series of runners 5, 5. The bearings 4, 4 are mounted to slide loosely upon the axial shafts 2 in order that the runners 5 may rest upon the upper surface of the disks 2, 2, thus enabling the fabric 7) passing between said runners 5 and the disks 2, 2 to transmit motion to said disks 2, 2 and runners 5, 5 as will be understood.

Connected to the bearings 4:, 4 are arms 6, 6 which by having beveled quadrantteeth 7 '7 are connected to corresponding quadrants 8, 8 pivoted at 8 upon bearings 9, 9 secured to the bearings 3 upon which the disks 2, 2 are mounted. As the fabric 7) is being fed in the direction opposite to that l1 and 12 are mounted upon the brackets 13 and 18 secured to the fixed framework of the machine to which my improved devices are applied.

lhe bearings 3 upon which are mounted the sprocket wheels which operate the stenteringchains so that when said chains are adjusted for. narrower or broader fabrics so also will my guiding devices be adjusted.

The actions of the several parts are as follows :After the attendant has passed the fabric over the two disks and beneath therunners thereon, and has secured the end of said fabric to the moving parts of the machine through which it has to pass for treatment, when said fabric commences to move, it transmits rotary motion to the disks 2, 2 in the direction indicated. bythe arrows cand d, one of said disks being rotated in one direction and the other in the opposite direction. As the disks 2, 2 are being thus rotated the runners 5, 5 arealso rotated in conjunction therewith, and provided the fabric?) fails to keep in its proper path (as say by moving toward the right side of the machine) then the weight 8 on the lever 8 will cause said lever to follow, since it always causes said lever to press upon the edge of the cloth'b, with the result that as said lever thus moves toward the cen-- ter of the machine it will cause the shaft 4 on which the runners 5 are mounted to move in the direction of the arrow 0; there fore said runners 5 will commence to drag the fabric outwardly in the direction of said arrow 0, in this manner bringing said fabric to its proper path and simultaneously by said fabric still pressing against the lever 8, the re-adjusting in position of said runners 5 will be effected and will retain the fabric 7) in its normal path.

During the time that the fabric is moving through its path toward the right side of the machine the lever 8 on that side of the machine will be forced outwardly or in the opposite direction to the lever '8 on the left side of the machine as hereinbefore described, with the result that the runners 5 on said side of the machine will be brought in a direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow d and therefore will force back the fabric into its normal position on this side of the machine.

In order that the fabric 72 may be acted upon to the desired extent by the runners 5, 5 the bearings 41, l upon which aid runners 5, 5 are mounted may be forced in a downare arranged to be carried by the brackets B fixed upon the bearings ward direction or against the surface of the disks 2, i by an adjusting spring device, or

the upper endfofthe, axial shaft 2* illustratedby Fig. l. V

The, Surfaces of the disks 2, 2 and runners 13,5 which have to act upon the surfaces =ofthelfabrics are prepared either by being covered with rubber, leather, felt or the like, or by having serrations or projections, so that they are thereby enabled to exercise greater influence over the fabric which they are conducting to tl'ien'iachine; Although I have hereinbefore described only one method of arranging the levers 8, 8 (and the parts used. in conjunctionwith same) which are for contact with the edge of the fabric, and which control the actions of the runners I am aware that many and varied arrangements of these several parts may be made use of withoutrdeparting from the nature of my invention.

Such being the nature of my said invention, what I claim is 1. An improvement in devices for feeding fabrics to stentering machines and the like comprising a'freely rotatable disk having its axis approximately at right angles to the plane in which the cloth .travels, bearings for said disk, runner bearings mounted to 'swlvel about the axlsof rotation of said .dlsk,

a shaft mounted in said runner bearings and radially disposed with respect to the axis of the disk, a series of runners rotatably mount ed upon said shaft and lever devices for varying the position of said swiveling bearings in accordance with. the position of the edge of the cloth. a r

2. An improvementin devices for guiding or feeding fabricsto stentering machines and the like/comprising a freely rotatable disk, bearings for said disk, said bearings being adjustable to retain the axis ofthe 'disk in a position approximately at right angles to the plane 1n which the fabric travels, swiveled bearings, runners mounted in said swivel bearings and mounted to contact with the upper surface of the disk, lever devlces for ad ust1ngsa1d swivel bearings,

and means contacting with the edge of the fabric for controlling said lever devices.

3. An improvement in devices for guiding or feeding fabrics to stentering machines Y tact with the upper surface of the disk, lever devices for adjusting said swivel bearings,

means contacting with the edge of the fabric for controlling said lever devices, and Weighting devices for controlling the pressureof said runners upon the face of the disk.

4. An improvement in devices for guiding or feeding fabrics to stentering machines and the like comprising a freely rotatable disk, bearings for said disk, said bearings being adjustable to retain the axis of the disk in a position approximately at right angles to the plane in which the fabric travels, swiveled bearings, runners mounted in said swiveled bearings and mounted to contact with the upper surface of the disk, lever devices for adjusting said swivel bearings, a lever having means to contact with the edge of the fabric for controlling said lever devices, and an adjustable weighting device for controlling the pressure of the last mentioned lever against the edge of the fabric.

5. An improvement in devices for guiding or feeding fabrics to stentering machines or the like comprising, a rotatable disk, bearings for said disk arranged to support its axis in a position approximately at right angles to the plane in which the fabric travels, three guiding rollers, two of them in one plane and an intermediate one situated in a higher plane for guiding the fabric passing over the surface of said disk, a counterbalanced bifurcated lever formed for contacting with the edge of the fabric in two positions, one 011 one side and the other on the other side of the central guiding roller, runners, swivel bearings therefor, and flexible connections from said bifurcated lever to the swivel bearings.

JOHN THORNBER.

copier of this patent maybe obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of ratenta Washington, D. 0." 

